1940's America: Pearl Harbor, War, Baby Boomers, Bebop, Jazz and a Cold War

A holocaust occurred as Germany carried out a program of state-sponsored genocide. Japan attacked an American naval base. The US was drawn into another war. The war ended in the first half of the decade, but the consequences lingered. The world population increased. After the war the country enjoyed big bands and jazz. New styles and individual expression emerged in fashion, music, literature, art and TV. Existentialists argued that individuals were defined by the decisions that they made. Modernism emerged as artists looked for new ways to express themselves. The world was divided into democratic and communist countries. Fear and distrust pushed the world into a“cold" war that would last decades. Many Osher members were born during this time. How did the world around us shape us and the world we live in today? Join us as we look back at a decade that shaped a country and the “boomer” generation.